Sociopathic Love
by justyoumi
Summary: Phobos learns that he can't take the heart by force, which leaves him only one other option.
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own W.i.t.c.h and I make no profit from my fanfics**

**I do not own any characters**

**I know the punctuation/ grammar is not perfect…but, I'm trying**

* * *

In the middle of the throne room sat Phobos in all his dark glory. Kneeling before him was Cedric in his human form.

"Where is the Heart of Kandrakar?"

Cedric raised his head. "Please, forgive me, my prince. Our forces ran into the rebel leader's army. We were greatly outnumbered and had no choice but to retreat".

"You mean to tell me that 500 of your best men, including yourself could not manage to beat 5 girls and at most one legion!".

Phobos's face came into the light. His crown, a ridged triangle had a large purple gemstone in the center, accompanied by two smaller rows of red glowing gems on either side of it; waist length blonde hair with two braids framing his angular face swayed gently as he banged his fist against the arm of his throne.

Cedric hung his head low in shame and out of fear of the prince's infamous temper. His heart thumped wildly in his chest as he searched his mind for a plan that will get him back into Phobos's good graces.

"Perhaps we are going about this the wrong way"

Phobos arched his eyebrow. "Explain yourself", he demanded.

Cedric nodded. "I received information from a highly reliable source that the Heart must be given willingly not taken by force"

Phobos leaned forward. "I see, and who is this highly reliable source?" he inquired, beckoning Cedric to rise.

"Fendrel of the Black Spring"

Phobos rubbed his goatee in thought. This new tidbit of information could help turn the tide of war in his favor and he saw no reason to distrust Fendrel; his information had greatly helped him in the past_. _Grabbing his scrying sands, he scattered them before him with a wave of his hand. Channeling his energy into them, the sand showed them Heatherfield at night. The scene switched to the guardian leader's bedroom; despite her headstrong personality, her bedroom was animal themed with a strong preference for frogs.

Phobos smiled at the guardian's vulnerable position. He studied her, watching her draw in a deep breaths, chest moving up and down. Phobos's eyes lingered on her chest before trailing up to her neck. The Heart clutched in her hand glowed with a dim light in tune with its wielder's relaxed state.

Phobos chuckled.

_Soon you will be mine_

* * *

"Will! This is the last time I'm calling you! Wake up!

"10 more minutes!"

"No, get up. You'll be late for school!"

Will turned her head and groaned in response.

_Why can't I just stay home?_

She ripped the covers from her face and rubbed her eyes before blinking at the sunrays that slipped through the gap in her curtains. She hastily peeled off her pajamas off and chucked them in the dirty laundry basket.

_Gotta do laundry soon. Running out of stuff to wear._

Will made her way to the bathroom for a quick shower. She turned on the faucet and held her fingers under the stream of water, waiting till the water had heated to step inside. She sighed deeply as she let the hot water drench her and soothe her skin. Lathering soap suds into her washcloth_, s_he scrubbed her skin and leaned around the curtain to retrieve a bottle of shampoo and conditioner. Squeezing it into the palm of her hand and rubbing it together; she massaged her short red hair.

"Will! Are you almost done? If you don't hurry, you'll miss breakfast!" yelled Susan from downstairs.

_No way am I missing breakfast!_

"I'm coming!"

After a few minutes, Will turned off the shower and went back to her room to choose the clothes she will wear for the day. Deciding on a pair of dark blue jeans and a simple black shirt with purple sneakers, she ran downstairs and into the kitchen where she found her mom cooking breakfast.

"Your breakfast is on the table"

"Thanks Mom".

Susan Vandom waited for her daughter to finish eating her first waffle before clearing her throat.

"Will, we need to talk"

Will looked up from her plate of waffles in mid-bite.

"I can't continue to wake you up every morning for school. You're a big girl now and you need to start acting like it"

"I'm a big girl that couldn't even go to Cornelia's birthday party on Sunday!"

"With an F on your history and math tests! I don't think so. And until your grades improve you can forget about partying or hanging out".

"But Mom!.." complained Will

"No 'buts' about it" said Susan. "We've been over this before, your grades come first"

Will said nothing and continued to eat. Susan slowly sipped her coffee and looked out the window. All she saw was a sheet of white covering the lawn and the neighbors' houses.

"It looks bad out there. Let me drive you to school"

"No thanks, I'll walk"

She pushed her chair back and grabbed her book bag.

"Will...wait"

"Bye Mom"

She pushed her chair back and grabbed her book bag, leaving the table before Susan can finish.

Winter had come early and Will was walking to school with her backpack slung over one shoulder. The coat she was wearing did not protect her from the cold as she would have liked, but it was the only thing she wanted to wear. Will blew out a puff of warm air, watching it disappear in the cold.

* * *

**A/N- This storyline has been dancing around my head for a couple of weeks and I thought hey why not. Sorry for this chapter being so short. Work and finals are taking a lot out of me. For those who took the chance to read the story, I thank you. I really hope I kept the characters true to their personalities. Read and review and please no flames**.


	2. Chapter 2

**I do not own W.i.t.c.h and I make no profit from my fanfics**

**I do not own any characters**

**I know the punctuation/ grammar is not perfect…but, I'm trying**

* * *

_Honk! Honk!_

"Mom, I told you I can walk!" yelled Will over her shoulder

_Honk! Honk!_

"Why can't you just leave me alone?!"

"Will it's me!"

Will turned around at the sound of her friend's voice. Irma was waving, beckoning for her to come to the passenger side of her dad's police car.

"Thanks for the ride Mr. Lair".

"No problem, but why would Susan let you walk in this kind of weather?" asked Tom, looking in the rear view mirror at Will

The snow was falling much harder now and the window wipers were on their highest setting. Will's eyes narrowed as the heat of the car warmed her body.

"Dad, they were arguing" quipped Irma.

"Irma!" cried Will

"What?. You were screaming Mom, leave me alone. So, I put two and two together, something you have a hard time doing in math class. Wanna talk about it?"

Will huffed. "My mom wants me to act my age, but she won't let me do anything. She said 'No' to me when I asked to go to Cornelia's birthday party, just because I failed my math and history test. They're just tests; they're not midterms or finals"

"She just wants the best for you. If you were my daughter, I definitely wouldn't let you party either. Irma failed French in junior high school and when she wanted to go I told her no. I don't reward failure".

"Not helping, Dad".

"Just saying"

Irma rolled her eyes."Speaking of the party. You didn't miss much. It was just me, the rest of the gang, Nigel, and Matt. No one else came and don't even get me started on the music".

Will giggled. When she was down Irma was there to cheer her up with a smile and funny, brash words. "So, Mr. Lair, I didn't know you drive this way to work"

"I don't. But while I was coming home from work yesterday, I took this route and found it was a shortcut to my house. Thanks to this shortcut, I'm able to make it back to my job and house in under two hours, rather than crossing the bridge which will take me four hours".

The car came to a stop.

"Alright, girls. We're here. Bye pumpkin"

"Dad, you're embarrassing me in front Will!"

"By showing love for my daughter?", he scratched his head and drove away.

Will shrugged and started walking towards the school. While she was walking, her phone vibrated with a text.

_I'm doing overtime again. I won't be home until 10 tonight. I left money on the counter for you to buy something to eat when you come in from school. _

_Love,_

_Mom._

Will was putting her phone away when somebody bumped into her.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" The person spat. 'The person' was Uriah. Slightly taller than Will. He was tanned, acne-ridden and had gel spiked orange hair. He was wearing a red hoodie, khaki pants and grey boots.

"Why don't you!" Will retorted, quite loudly.

Uriah was taken back. "No one talks to me like that!"

"Clearly someone should" shot Irma. She rushed to her friend's side, elbowing her way through the crowd that started to form.

Uriah's face turned a bright shade of red. He lunged toward Irma, but his friend held him back.

"Dude, Knickers at nine o'clock"

Walking outside to the courtyard, a pair of high heels clicked on the ground pushing through the crowd of students.

"Mrs. Knickerbocker", Will said as they all turned around.

"And just what is going on here?" A lady who looks to be in her 50's stood proud and tall wearing a white pantsuit walks toward Uriah, Irma, and Will. The crowd began to scatter.

"He started it" said Will and Irma in union. They pointed at Uriah accusingly.

"Nuh uh. I wasn't doing anything wrong" said Uriah. He waved his hands in defense.

Mrs. Knickerbocker pursed her lips. "Oh I think not Uriah. I saw you from my office window. Sheffield Institute is well known for its zero-tolerance policy for offensive behavior and I personally intend to uphold it; so I'll expect to see you at 4 for detention"

"Y-y-yes ma'am" said Uriah dejectedly.

"Good. There will be no more of this nonsense".

Mrs. Knickerbocker turned her attention to Will and Irma. "Well, what are you two young ladies waiting for? The late bell has rung; get to class or you will both join Mr. Dunn in detention"

"We're on it" said Irma.

* * *

Deep in the heart of the castle, Phobos mixed potions together.

Phobos grabbed the jars to inspect the jars of ingredients before flashing a satisfied smile. He dropped a handful of herbs into the black cauldron and coughed as smoke billowed. Using a small wooden spoon Phobos counted out nine black beetle carapaces. He moved the beetle carapaces from the jar to the mortar then took up the marble pestle, grounding them to a medium fine powder. He stirred it in with six clockwise stirs followed by nine counter-clockwise stirs.

The concoction turned yellow and fizzed like acid; a decaying scent rising from the mouth. With a frown, Phobos sprinkled charred leaves inside, causing the liquid to ripple violently, shifting from yellow to green.

"It's still missing something"

The bottles of extracts and essences clinked together as he dug through his storage in search of the reagent he needed. After going through five shelves, his slate eyes rested on the top shelf, scanning the vials of various colors. His gaze finally rested on a vial filled with a burgundy colored liquid.

"There you are"

_Dragon's blood. This will improve my potion's quality, increasing the potency seven fold._

Phobos didn't waste any time resuming his task at perfecting the mixture. He dropped five droplets of the dragon's blood and swirled it around to integrate it, watching it froth as it made contact.

"And now for the final ingredients"

Phobos closed his eyes, pressing the blade of the athame against his skin, he drew a thin line against his index finger. Opening his eyes he saw the thin line of blood appear.

Phobos let his blood drip into the concoction. The now light blue potion flared up and turned a deep violet.

"Lord Cedric!"

"Yes, my liege"

"I require your services. A lock of your hair if you would"

Cedric refrained from arching an eyebrow. He looked down at the athame in his master's hand and back into his master's impatient eyes. His hands curled around the knife and he brought it to the nape of his neck. He cut off a lock of blonde hair and handed it to Phobos.

Phobos had a hard time holding back his sadistic grin. The hair shimmered against the murky potion before dissolving. He poured some of the potion into a small, glass vial, careful of not getting it on his hands. Holding the compound against the dim light of a lone candle, Phobos laughed in triumph.

"Now, fetch me the rebel leader. Bring me Caleb".

* * *

Will Vandom was absolutely bored. History class was the most boring class she experienced in all the months of attending Sheffield Institute. Mr. Collins drawled on and on about the Roman Empire.

"The Romans were one of the first known civilizations to invent indoor plumbing. The Roman public baths, or thermae served hygienic, social and cultural functions"

Will looked at Taranee. She was paying attention to the lecture and was taking notes with an occasional hand in the air to ask a question.

Will looked at the clock and huffed. Only half an hour passed and she stilled had half an hour left to go.

"Alright class, clear your desks. We'll be having a pop quiz today. You have the rest of the class period to finish" Mr. Collins said cheerfully as the class groaned. He passed out the quiz papers, dropping 2 sheets on each student desk.

"Stupid teacher" muttered Will

Will looked at the paper closely. She scribbled her name, growing uneasy when she started reading the questions.

**30 minutes later**

"Class, I finished grading your quizzes!" Mr. Collins announced happily. "Most of you did well". He walked around passing back the papers accordingly.

"Congratulations, Taranee! You got the highest grade in the class!"

Taranee blushed. "Thank you Mr. Collins".

Mr. Collins smiled. As he handed back the quizzes, he spoke words of encouragement

"Excellent job, Emma"

"Great work, Toby"

"Not bad, Peter"

"Jean. I think you need to study more"

Mr. Collins finally stopped in front of Will.

"Will, you have greatly improved. Keep up the good work"

He handed her back her paper.

Will's mouth fell open and the paper drops. "I got a B+!", she beamed. "Wait till my Mom hears about this!"

* * *

"Rise and shine", said the Head Guard, throwing dirty water on Caleb. He laughed at Caleb's anger, not noticing that Caleb's body was tensed for attack.

_Catch him by surprise. Fight back. Make a run for it. _

Caleb repeated the mantra over and over in his head. The Head Guard pulled out small, rusty key and opened his cell. He grabbed the chains on Caleb's wrists, pulling him towards him so he can unlock his shackles.

_Wait for it...Now!_

With his hands free, Caleb head-butted the guard in his nose. The guard stumbled back, holding his nose in pain. Caleb ran past him.

"That will teach you to throw water on me" yelled Caleb over his shoulder. He sprinted down the corridor and around the corner to see a pair of large doors opening.

Cedric appeared in his snake form.

"Going sssomewhere?" he hissed.

Caleb charged at Cedric, but he dodged and swung his tail knocking Caleb to the ground. Cedric gave him one more hit with his tail, right on his back.

"Aaagh!" Caleb cried out. Cedric laughed, adding more pressure. The weight on his back was too much, he couldn't move. Caleb felt his strength growing weaker and weaker. His eyelids twitched and grew heavy as darkness consumed his vision. He fell unconscious.


	3. Chapter 3

Caleb groaned as he came to, his wrists starting to ache from the way he was held. His mind felt fuzzy and he tried to turn his head to look around. "Uhhh…" he groaned weakly, his voice sounding foreign to his own ears. Something felt wrong. Very very wrong.

Phobos walked in and smirked as he stared down at Caleb. "Ah, I see you've awakened," he purred, his silky voice dripping with malice and false concern.

"What have you done to me?" Caleb asked weakly, still trying to process what happened. He struggled to pull himself free to get at Phobos. It slowly dawned him as he struggled against the chains that he couldn't feel his legs. His eyes drifted down his body and widened in shock and horror.

"What did you do to me Phobos?!"

Phobos chuckled. "This is a merely a body swap. You are in Cedric's body and he is in yours. What better way to lure the guardians here. You have already earned their trust, all that is left now is for 'you' to deliver them to me".

* * *

Cedric disliked this body. Disliked was probably far too light of a term for him to be using. He hated the fact that he had to pretend he was that loathsome rebel leader in order to lure the guardians back to Meridian to hand them over to Phobos. The body was shorter and weaker than his natural and human form, the skin was much thinner, and his senses were not as acute. But what he hated the most was the fact that he could not perform magic.

"All in the name of Prince Phobos"

His green eyes glanced about, trying to spot the girls he was looking for.

A faint smile crossed his features as he noticed two familiar figures heading to the Silver Dragon restaurant. He had passed it several times while in his human form but had never made the connection until now. And now he felt like an fool for not noticing it before.

"So, are you ready for the Winter Festival Dance?" asked Hay Lin, looking at Will. "It's only two weeks away; do you have a partner and a dress?"

"No. Dances aren't really my thing"

"But you have to come. There's going to be ice sculptures, streamers, and you don't necessarily have to dance, you can socialize"

"I don't have a date. I broke up with Matt, remember?"

"I can ask Cornelia to play matchmaker".

"No way. Her taste in boys and my taste boys are different".

"Give it a try. Sometimes difference is good".

* * *

_Indeed it is._

Cedric listened intently. It was simply amazing what you could learn about your opponents when they thought you weren't there. He soon found himself approaching the girls and giving them what passed for a smile.

"Caleb!" Hay Lin cried. "Where have you been?" she asked. "It's been awhile since we last saw you"

"Off doing rebel stuff and fighting Prince Phobos" he lied. "You know how bad it is in Meridian"

"Phobos is such a tyrant. What kind of man lets his own people suffer?" said Hay Lin clenching her fist.

"That's why I need your help".

"What's the problem?"

"I can't talk here, it's too risky".

Caleb looked around to ensure that they were not being overheard. Leaning closer again to Will, he whispered into her ear, "I'll tell you tonight at dinner"

"Whoa Whoa Whoa. Hold up. Dinner?"

Will gave him her best "I don't believe a word you're telling me" look.

Caleb nodded. "Yes. I know a restaurant in the middle of the city. I'll pick you up at 9"

"Caleb, are you feeling O.K. Why are you acting so strange?"

"Yeah, this isn't like you" Hay Lin looked at him slightly worried.

Cedric decided that he had enough of Will's mouth and that the best way to silence her would be to kiss her. He pulled her against him, looked deeply into her eyes and then promptly captured her lips in a crushing kiss.

Will drew back first, stars in her eyes for a moment, before snapping back to her senses and slapping him across the cheek. "I don't believe you, Caleb! How could you! Kissing me while you're dating Cornelia!" she snarled and turned on her heel to go when Caleb grabbed her arm, causing her to stop midstride. She whipped around to glare at him.

* * *

Phobos laughed to himself as he witnessed Cedric in action in Caleb's body. "Ah, priceless, don't you think so, Caleb?" he asked, gesturing to the scene of Caleb's body kissing Christine. "Lord Cedric is quite the actor"

Caleb groaned softly. That was something he did not wanted to see. He didn't want to see himself or rather the shell of who he was taking advantage of the girls. His golden eyes moistened as he stared at the scene that was taking place, willing himself not to cry. He struggled against the chains, trying to break free.

""Those chains will not break easily. The pain of the heart is the greatest pain of all. Surrender; pledge your alliance and obedience to me and I will free you from this pain" said Phobos.

"Never! I'll never ally myself with you!"

"Still defiant after all this time. Such a pity, but that will change"

* * *

"You girls won't believe this", Hay Lin said, flouncing down on a cushion in the girls' usual corner in the Silver Dragon.

"What?" said Taranee, taking a sip of her tea.

"Will and I ran into Caleb and he asked Will out to dinner."

"He what?" said Cornelia. She fixed Will with a death glare. "Caleb asked you out?!"

"Not only did he asked me out, he kissed me"

"He kissed you! Are you trying to steal my boyfriend away from me!"

"Cornelia I'm not even interested in Caleb. You know that!

"Oh, so now you're calling him ugly! You know your little ex-boyfriend Matt wasn't even that cute "

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means..."

"It means that you're little screaming match is making people look at us!" interjected Taranee. She motioned to the patrons of the restaurant staring at them. Murmurs and hushed whispers could be heard, inaudible, but she knew who they were talking about.

"I hate being the center of attention" said Taranee, slouching down in her seat.

"Nothing to see here folks. We're just rehearsing for a play!" shouted Irma. She did clapped and did a mock bow.

"He never done that to me. The most I ever got was a peck on the cheek!" Cornelia shook with anger. "That cheating backstabbing bastard. I'm going to kill him"

"Chill Cornelia, I'm sorry he did this to you, but maybe there's more to it" said Taranee, rubbing her shoulder to calm her down

"More to what?! He's going out with my friend!" She looked at Will with teary hurtful eyes. "You're not seriously going to go"

"I have to. He said he couldn't talk in the open. Things are really bad Meridian!"

"But why couldn't he come here?!. He came here in the past without any problems!" sobbed Cornelia. Her long blonde hair covered her face and tears as she silently cried.

"Don't cry Cornelia, Caleb is simply going to talk to Will. There's nothing to worry about. I know what will make you feel much better; a pedicure and a manicure at the Diamond Nails Spa"

"I don't want a pedicure and a manicure. I want Caleb!" cried Cornelia.

"Corny turned down a pedicure and a manicure, never thought I'll see the day. I say we use the Heart, Guardian up and go investigate," Irma offered, taking a bite from the fortune cookie on her plate.

"So, what's the fortune?" Taranee asked, glancing over at Irma.

"Do not be covered in sadness or be fooled in happiness for they both must exist".

"Oh, I'm not covered in sadness" Cornelia sniffled and wiped away angry tears with a quick flick of her fingers. "Enjoy your date Will!"

Her eyebrows furrowed and she stood up, grabbing her yellow messenger bag and leaving with a loud huff.

"And the award to the most dramatic departure goes to Cornelia Hale. Give her a big round of applause"

"Irma knock it off" chided Taranee

Will pinched the bridge of her nose. "I have to go. It's not getting any earlier; and the sooner we find out what Phobos is up to, the better"

* * *

Caleb barely reacted to what Phobos was showing him. This was another of his mind games. He knew that Phobos was trying to get inside his head, to break him, to force him to surrender. Caleb couldn't react, no matter how much he wanted to.

"Please enjoy your stay," crooned Phobos . "I have a heart and a world to claim as my very own." With a final laugh, he left the throne room.

Caleb allowed the tears to fall after Phobos left. Everything he had worked for – everything he had loved– destroyed by a few simple actions of Cedric.

* * *

"And where are you off to at this time of night?" Susan turned off the TV, yawning as she turned to the teen.

"I'm going out. You said I can go out if my grades improve"

"Yes I did, but not on a school night"

"Mom, it's Wednesday"

"I don't care what day it is. The last time you pulled this trick; you came in at 4 in the morning, after I told you that your curfew is 11. I'm not having it".

"That's bullshit! I came in at midnight. You came down the stairs at 4 to see me eating breakfast!"

Susan slapped her hard on the face, "Don't you dare use that language and that tone on me!"

Will cradled her cheek. She was shocked, and yet, it was as if she already expected this to happen. "You struck me!"

"Will..."

Will felt like she had enough, "You know what?" she said, "I'm done. I wont ask you to go out anymore!"

"Will!" Will heard her mother call out her name but she didn't care. She turned on her heel and ran to her bedroom, slamming her door behind her.


	4. Chapter 4

**I do not own W.i.t.c.h and I make no profit from my fanfics**

**I do not own any characters**

**I know the punctuation/ grammar is not perfect…but, I'm trying**

* * *

Will stared at the ceiling, her expression blank.

She hugged her pillow and rolled her eyes around the room. She was so sad but the tears wouldn't come out. Will turned to the other side of the bed.

And then, a tear fell from her eyes

And then, another one.

And then, it just felt like her eyes broke and she couldn't stop crying.

Will grabbed her sheets and started to cry in silence. The sadness within her was already too deep, something she has kept in secret for so long.

But it only lasted for a while.

"Will? Honey please open the door. I just want to talk".

"Fine. Talk, but not to me; to my astral drop" said Will quietly. "Pord Lartsa" Will said Astral Drop backwards and a clone of Will was made.

"Hey"

"Hi" The astral drop said smiling.

_I hope this works_

Will gave her astral drop a brief summary of the night's events. With every word, the astral drop's face fell. Will gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, mom is going to knock a second time. Open the door and look sad. Whatever she tells you to do, do it without arguing. You got that?"

The astral drop nodded.

Will walked to one end of her room and slid the window open silently. She slid out the small space, looped her legs around the drain pipe and began to quickly and effortlessly climb down. All her guardian training was paying off. Will hit the ground and hurried out into the street.

* * *

Caleb glanced up to see Vathek standing in the doorway to the cell and turned his head away. He didn't want to look at his friend – especially in his current form.

Vathek sighed. Caleb was going to be stubborn – as always. "Caleb. Get over it."

Caleb's head whipped around and he fixed Vathek with a glare. "Get over it?! I'm stuck in Cedric's body and you tell me to get over it?!" he snarled. "What are you doing here?"

"Breaking you out for the umpteenth time" said Vathek.

"Physical force won't work"

"I know that's why I brought help"

Vathek moved aside. Caleb saw a girl that looked no less than twelve. In that moment, he noticed how thin she was. Her shoulder blades poked out like stunted wings; her arms were skeletal, and her face was etiolated. She wore a tattered old brown cloak with its hood up, covering unwashed, blonde hair. The boots under her grey drab dress were cracked and scuffed.

"This is Orella, she's a spell caster and a healer"

"A spell caster? I thought all spell casters were required to serve Phobos's army or be put to death"

"My mother before she died, taught me how to control and hide my gifts" said Orella sheepishly

"Your mother was a good woman and you did a lot today by coming here"

"...Thank you"

"Can you free him?" interrupted Vathek. He was getting anxious and impatient. Now was not the time to go down memory lane.

"I'll try"

Orella was clearly thinking hard about it, with a crease between her eyebrows, concentration and determination in her purple eyes. She kneeled down next to Caleb, fingering the jagged metal cuffs digging into his wrists.

She closed her eyes, freeing her mind of everything but the feel of the metal links and the sound of her chanting, feeling her magic pulsing through her.

Caleb felt the room get colder and colder. He shivered as he exhaled; his breath formed a cold smoke as it hit the air. His restraints started to freeze, tiny icy droplets formed, covering the surface completely.

Caleb pulled with all his might, fracturing the steel. Orella jumped in surprise, scrambling behind Vathek.

"I have to get to Will!"

He swung his tail at the door, making contact and sending it flying into the wall.

"I know that, but how are you going to get to them in time?! You don't know where she is; you're nowhere near a portal and they won't listen to you in that beast's body!"

"I can find Blunk. He'll take me to the girls!"

Vathek led the way followed by Orella and Caleb. Vathek came to a halt; he gestured for them to stop. His hand went up to cup his ear. Caleb not use to slithering crashed into him, knocking them both down.

"I heard a noise coming from that way!" yelled a guard.

"Go. Take Orella. I'll distract the guards"

* * *

It felt very odd to have Caleb paying attention to her – very odd, she thought. Will picked up her glass of water and sipped it slowly, watching him through half closed eyes. "So…?"

"Hmm?" Caleb answered, glancing up at the leader. "Is something bothering you?"

"You keep staring at me". She hadn't spotted her friends, and probably would have died of utter embarrassment if she did. She had made loud protests about wearing dresses in the past and here she was wearing a black knee length dress with matching black high heels.

"You look beautiful" Caleb answered. From what he picked up from his time on Earth; girls loved it when guys give them compliments on their appearance.

"Thank you; but why are you being so nice to me, Caleb? It's not like you," she said, suddenly finding her napkin and fork fascinating.

"I know we argue a lot, but we could at least be nice to each other," Caleb answered.

"Well you can start by telling me what Phobos is up to?"

"Phobos found a way to create portals, to hasten the delivery of supplies to his troops"

"How?!"

"By a machine. It's protected by a magic barrier that we can't break; even worst some of my soldiers defected to his side. The machine is supposed to power on tonight to ship his troops more supplies".

"That's not going to happen"

"It can't, that's why I need your help"

"No, you need W.i.t.c.h."

Will pulled out her phone and made a few phone calls.

Caleb inwardly smirked. Phobos's plan initially called for him to turn over Will, but with the rest of the of the guardians on their way to fall into his trap was less effort on his part and a bigger reward from Phobos.

_Foolish humans_

Caleb rose, he dropped payment for the meal on the table and lead Will from the restaurant. Her cheeks took on a crimson hue as he slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her close to him.

While they were walking, she saw a flash of blond hair, and stiffened. Caleb, sensing that she was uncomfortable, stopped walking and looked at her with concern

"Are you alright?"

Will shook her head in response. "I thought I saw something; the others are meeting us here, then you can show us the way"

* * *

Elsewhere in the city, vendors were selling their goods in the marketplace. In one corner of the bazaar area, a merchant stood a tree stump, calling out to passersby and onlookers to buy his wares.

"Blunk has hat for ladies and shoe-knives! Buy Buy Buy for very low price!"

"Blunk!"

Blunk looked around to find out who called for him and saw Cedric coming his way.

"Aaah! Lord Cedric! Blunk did nothing wrong"

The passling broke off into a run. He strafed from side to side, dodging the people who had not yet gotten out of the rampaging snake's path. Wooden poles jutted out of the walls which gave the passling an idea. Jumping up, he grabbed the lowest one and quickly pulled himself up. He leaped from one to another before making it to the rooftop.

"Blunk! Stop running! It's me Caleb! Back at Knavemire I saved you from the mellifers when you tried to pick their flowers and steal their honey!"

Blunk stopped and turned around, curiosity lined his features. "Caleb, snake?"

"No time to explain. I need you to find me a portal"

"Nearest portal in Delenaran Forest. Too far from here"

"I'll give you some chocolate if you take me there"

"Deal"

* * *

"Where's Cornelia?" asked Will

"I don't know, she should have gotten the text to meet here" said Hay Lin looking at her watch.

"We don't have time to wait, we have to go now!" urged Caleb. "Phobos is making his army stronger by the minute, and my troops can barely hold them off; we can't waste anymore time, we have to go without her!"

"Are you crazy?! We can't fight without Cornelia, the last time we did, we nearly got our buts handed to us by a bunch of slugs" said Irma.

"Maybe she's still upset" said Taranee. "I'll try contacting her" she closed her eyes and rubbed her temples.

_Cornelia...Cornelia. It's me, Taranee. Where are you? We need you to meet us in the park near the pond._

Taranee opened her eyes in alarm. "She's blocking me! I can't reach her!"

"We don't have a choice" said Will. "Guardians unite!"

Mystical energy flooded from the Heart. The lights of their respective elements circled around them. They levitated in the air as they changed to their Guardian forms.

The portal pulsed a darker blue. Will was the first person to step through, checking to see if the coast was clear before calling out to her friends.

They landed in a swamp. Branches stretched overhead, a thick smell of rotting leaves and the smell of stagnant water hovered in the air.

"Follow me" said Caleb

_To your demise._

* * *

Clutching her shawl to her chest, Cornelia was careful not to make a sound. Her parents were light sleepers, great parents or not, they would ground her if they saw her sneaking out of the house at this time of night.

Cornelia was afraid to breath as she walked past her parents bedroom and tiptoed down the wooden stairs. When she made it to the door, she walked out side and shut it with a small _click_.

Cornelia ran only to have someone grab her from behind. She started to struggle, trying to break free. A quick glance up and over her shoulder made her cringe as she saw Cedric holding her from behind.

"Cornelia , calm down, please," Cornelia said to her, his voice a weak whisper. He was finding it a hard time to keep his emotions in check. The pain, the hurt, the concern; all took turns warring for dominance in his voice.

"I said let me go!" she cried, continuing to struggle. Why wasn't he letting go? And why did his grip seem so frighteningly familiar? She stopped struggling for a moment, and let her body sag against his.

Caleb let his grip loosen ever so slightly, but still held on to her. "You done struggling?" he asked, allowing a faint smile to cross his borrowed features when he saw her barely nod. "Good, because believe it or not, I'm not going to hurt you."

She glanced over her shoulder and held "Cedric's eyes. "Say what?" she repeated, looking up at him in disbelief. "I don't believe you, Cedric."

Caleb tilted his head back and then looked back down at the girl in front of him. "Cornelia, please, you have to believe me"

"Stop your lies!"

Cornelia swung her arms in a sweeping arc, sending a blast of magic his way. Green vines exploded out of the sidewalk, and wrapped around him, trying to squeeze the life out of him. Thorns digging into his skin.

"Cornelia!"

He cried out in shock and panic, more vines shot up and curled around his torso and his tail, pulling him down to the ground.

"Cornelia! Please, you have to believe me!"

"Caleb?" she asked, her voice low.

Cornelia stared down at him, sheer horror dancing across her pale features. "Caleb?!" she squeaked, not wanting to believe what just happened. Her tiny hand reached down and she placed it on the side of his face. She was visibly trembling as she stood before him. "Oh, Caleb."

The vines released their hold on Caleb and crept back into the earth.

"Shh... it's okay, Cornelia" he murmured. "It's okay." He was hoping to calm her down so she didn't go further into hysterics.

Cornelia continued to tremble as she stood in front of him. She didn't know if she should be afraid or not. Her heart knew it was Caleb, but her eyes said otherwise.

Caleb could tell she was ready to run, and there was nothing he could do to keep her from panicking. "Cornelia… please…" he breathed, trying to keep his voice stable and failing. "I need your help."

"I don't know how to help you," she cried, her voice breaking. "I don't know how". She sank to her knees, burying her face in her hands and started to cry. Her whole body trembled as she wept.

Caleb sank down to the ground and pulled her close to him, rocking her gently.

* * *

**A/N- **** I'll try to write more in the later chapters. Also, I was thinking of making the later chapters Mature. **


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